Coexistence of psoriasis and linear IgA bullous dermatosis

Autoimmune blistering diseases provoked during the treatment of chronic inflammatory disease with biologic agents: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

To investigate the clinical course of autoimmune blistering diseases (AIBDs) following treatment with biologic agents (BAs) for chronic inflammatory diseases.

METHODS

A comprehensive review of available, published literature was performed using PubMed and CINAHL search engines. Diagnostic criteria of AIBD included positive direct immunofluorescence studies and/or positive serology with clinically suggestive features.

RESULTS

A total of 22 cases of AIBDs provoked by the use of BAs were found. The most commonly implicated agents were tumor necrosis factor-alpha inhibitors (n = 14). The mean age of onset of AIBD was 59.4 years (median 61.5 years, range 31-82). Average time to onset of AIBD following initiation of the suspected BA was 33.7 ± 43.8 weeks (range 3 days to 152 weeks). Psoriasis was the most common associated condition for which the BA was prescribed (n = 11), followed by rheumatoid arthritis (n = 6) and ulcerative colitis (n = 5). Of the 21 cases reporting AIBD outcome, 17 reported remission or complete resolution upon stopping treatment with the involved BA. Four cases reported continued bullae formation without worsening of disease following cessation of the BA or systemic corticosteroids used to treat the AIBD. Five cases rechallenged the patient with the involved BA and four of the five reported recurrence, often with quicker onset and more severe symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS

BAs may be suspected in patients developing AIBD while being treated for chronic inflammatory diseases. A majority of cases resolve upon cessation of the offending agent.

Linear IgA bullous dermatosis

Aim: to present a clinical case of linear IgA bullous dermatosis.Materials and methods. A 44 years old patient complaining of skin rashes on the trunk and extremities, accompanied by severe itching was examined. We carried out a morphological investigation of biopsy samples derived from the lesion and apparently unaffected skin areas using the method of indirect immunofluorescence.Results. The patient having rashes in the form of multiple vesicles and small bubbles with a tight cover, which had been grouped into figures resembling pearl necklaces, demonstrated the presence of focal subepidermal cracks (subepidermal bubble in one location), as well as a linear deposition of IgA along the epidermal basement membrane. According to the clinical picture and following the histological and immunofluorescent investigation of skin biopsies, the patient was diagnosed with linear IgA bullous dermatosis. Lesion regression was achieved as a result of systemic therapy with prednisolone at a dose of 50 mg per day.Conclusion. The diagnosis of linear IgA bullous dermatosis should be made on the basis of skin biopsy investigation by the method of indirect immunofluorescence. Systemic glucocorticosteroids are seen as an effective approach to the treatment of such patients.

Humoral Epitope Spreading in Autoimmune Bullous Diseases

Autoimmune blistering diseases are characterized by autoantibodies against structural adhesion proteins of the skin and mucous membranes. Extensive characterization of their autoantibody targets has improved understanding of pathogenesis and laid the basis for the study of antigens/epitopes diversification, a process termed epitope spreading (ES). In this review, we have reported and discussed ES phenomena in autoimmune bullous diseases and underlined their functional role in disease pathogenesis. A functional ES has been proposed: (1) in bullous pemphigoid patients and correlates with the initial phase of the disease, (2) in pemphigus vulgaris patients with mucosal involvement during the clinical transition to a mucocutaneous form, (3) in endemic pemphigus foliaceus, underlining its role in disease pathogenesis, and (4) in numerous cases of disease transition associated with an intermolecular diversification of immune response. All these findings could give useful information to better understand autoimmune disease pathogenesis and to design antigen/epitope specific therapeutic approaches.

Autoimmune bullous diseases associations

The presence of one autoimmune disorder helps lead to the discovery of other autoimmune conditions. It is thought that diseases in which autoimmunity is a feature tend to be associated together more often than one can ascribe to chance. A variety of diseases have been implicated in the onset of intraepidermal and subepidermal autoimmune diseases. The presence of one autoimmune disease should alert the physician to watch for a second immunologic disorder. A list of autoimmune bullous diseases associations includes autoimmune bullous diseases, pemphigus, pemphigoid, epidermolysis bullosa acquisita, dermatitis herpetiformis (Duhring), linear immunoglobulin A disease, and multiple autoimmune syndrome.

Concomitant psoriasis and bullous pemphigoid: coincidence or pathogenic relationship?

Psoriasis vulgaris and bullous pemphigoid represent two clinically well-characterized, chronic, inflammatory skin diseases. The concomitant occurrence of these two entities in a patient is rare, and the pathogenic implications of this phenomenon are unknown. We describe a 55-year-old woman with a 25-year history of plaque-type psoriasis who presented with disseminated tense bullae. Skin biopsies showed the typical histologic and immunohistochemical traits of bullous pemphigoid, and she had circulating immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies against the basement membrane zone, specifically the BP180 antigen. The bullous eruption was successfully treated with oral methylprednisolone and dapsone. Bullous pemphigoid is the autoimmune blistering disease that has most often been associated with psoriasis. Forty cases have been described in the literature. Classical psoriasis and psoriasis associated with bullous pemphigoid are identical. The pathogenic relationship between psoriasis and bullous pemphigoid is unclear. It has been postulated that the autoimmune process responsible for bullous pemphigoid lesions may be induced by ultraviolet light therapy, topical corticosteroids, and/or the inflammatory processes that occur in psoriasis. Immunomodulatory therapy may positively influence shared as well as distinct inflammatory mechanisms in patients who have psoriasis and bullous pemphigoid.

Bullous pemphigoid in a patient with psoriasis during the course of PUVA therapy: study by ELISA test

A 65-year-old woman had a history of deep vein thrombosis and depression. Psoriasis was diagnosed in 1986 and various topical and systemic therapies, singly or in combination, were prescribed: tar, topical corticosteroids, cyclosporine, etretinate, and methotrexate. Two courses of oral and one course of bath psoralen plus UVA (PUVA) therapy (cumulative dose, 467 J/cm(2)) and UVB (2.96 J/cm(2)) had been given. In January 1999, she developed a flare of generalized psoriasis. In May 1999, therapy with PUVA (8-methoxypsoralen) plus topical acetonide triamcinolone 0.1% was initiated. At the time, she was taking acenocoumarol, lorazepam, and hydroxyzine chlorhydrate. In August 1999, at session 30, when the dose of UVA was 9 J/cm(2), and the total dose was 205 J/cm(2), a bulla appeared on the dorsum of the toe and was controlled with topical antibiotics. Five further sessions of PUVA were given and a generalized itching bullous eruption appeared all over the body. PUVA was stopped and the patient was hospitalized. On physical examination, extensive psoriatic plaques plus vesicles and bullae on the normal skin and on psoriatic lesions were observed all over the body (Fig. 1). Histopathologic study of a lesion showed a subepidermal vesicle containing fibrin, neutrophils, and a few eosinophils. No sunburn cells were observed (Fig. 2). The direct immunofluorescence (DIF) test of perilesional uninvolved skin revealed immunoglobulin G (IgG) (Fig. 3) and C3 at the dermal-epidermal junction. The DIF study using the patient's skin, previously treated with 1 m NaCl, localized the IgG at both the epidermal and dermal sides of the basement membrane zone (Fig. 4). Bullous pemphigoid (BP) was diagnosed and therapy with prednisone (60 mg/day) was started. The disease was well controlled in 3 weeks. The dose of prednisone was tapered and stopped 20 months later, without any recurrence. Study of the antibodies by the indirect immunofluorescence (IIF) test, using monkey esophagus and guinea pig as substrate, was positive at a titer of 1/160 in September 1999. The titer decreased to 1/10 in January 2000, and was negative in July 2000. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test, performed using the commercial kit MBL, which identifies antibodies directed against epitopes of the extracellular fragment NC16 of antigen 2 of BP, was positive at 15 U/mL (normal value, < 9 U/mL) in September 1999, and negative in July 2000 (Table 1).

Coexistence of psoriasis and linear IgA disease in a patient with recent herpes zoster infection

We report the case of a 29-year-old man with chronic plaque psoriasis who developed linear IgA disease following herpes zoster infection. There has only been one previous report describing the coexistence of psoriasis and linear IgA disease, which was confirmed by immunopathological studies. In our patient, immunoblotting studies identified IgA antibodies binding to BP180 and BP230 antigens, and IgG autoantibodies binding weakly to the BP180 antigen. This is an interesting case that we believe is an example of epitope spreading in the development of autoimmune subepidermal bullous diseases.